Travel Guide Tends

The Roya rises at the Col de Tende and continues its course at the foot of peaks over 2,000 m in altitude, until it joins the Bévéra and flows into the Mediterranean at Ventimiglia, Italy. Altitude and relief are very varied along the Roya and the richness of the biodiversity is exceptional: one passes from mountain forest to Mediterranean vegetation, with a great variety of colours and endemic species The village of Tende, nestled at an altitude of 850 m at the foot of the eponymous pass, is the largest municipality in the Alpes-Maritimes, including Tende, Saint-Dalmas-de-Tende and the hamlets of Castérino, Viévola, Granile and Canaresse. It is on its territory that the remarkable Vallée des Merveilles is located in the Mercantour National Park. The pass of Tende culminating at 1,871 m is the lowest and most direct passage in the Alps between eastern Provence and Piedmont. The military fortresses above it offer a breathtaking view as far as Mount Rose at 4,364 m. Thus, the valley is not only a beautiful natural site: its history is rich in adventures! Like all the villages of this valley, Tende has changed many times of domination: in 1581, the county of Tende was acquired by the House of Savoy; then the territories of Tende and La Brigue were tossed between France and Italy and were definitively ceded to France only with the peace treaty of Paris on February 10, 1947. As a beautiful legacy of history, many dialects still exist in the villages.